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These draft minutes will be on the agenda of our 2-20-01 meeting for approval
The regular meeting of the Northridge Community Council (NCC) was called to order at 7:10 p.m. by Acting President Walter N. Prince. Approximately 70 persons attended. Prince apologized for the low turnout, saying that although the city’s Department of Neighborhood Empowerment (DONE) had paid for a mailing to almost 1400 Stakeholders, the flyers did not begin arriving in mailboxes until today, just hours prior to the start of the meeting. It was noted that there was a 5-day lag between the day the flyers were handed to LA City for mailing (1-11-02) and the day of delivery (1-16-02), and that future mailings will obviously have to be made at least 8 or 9 days prior to the desired delivery date.
The minutes of the previous meeting (December 19, 2001) were approved as corrected. (A meeting date was incorrectly stated in the December Minutes).
Walter Prince asked for a motion to revise the by-laws to reflect the boundary change agreed to by NCC and the Old Northridge Council. On motion duly made and seconded, the motion unanimously carried.
Andy Anderson gave the Treasurer’s report. The balance in the treasury is $144.00.
Prince gave the status on the NCC Application for Certification. NCC has sent everything to city’s DONE, and is waiting for a Hearing Date. Five locations are required to be posted with Notices, after the Certification is formalized.
The Agendized discussion on the street cleaning, graffiti and illegal posting of signs was continued to the NCC next meeting so that today’s full meeting could be devoted to the issue of a proposed high school on the CSUN campus.
Jim Parker gave a slide presentation on the proposed high school, which the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) calls a Teacher Training Academy (TTA) for "local" students.
LAUSD Board Member Julie Korenstein, an invitee, then gave a brief overview on the TTA. She stated that the project had been in the works for about 8 years, and that the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) will be voted on by the LAUSD Board at its March meeting. The completion date for the building is scheduled for 2004. Korenstein introduced members of the LAUSD team to help answer questions.
Questions about the project were taken from the audience. Traffic, student selection and other issues were discussed. There was concern that the project benefited only Monroe High School, from which 888 students with a 2.0 grade point average can apply for transfer to the CSUN campus. The type of designation of the school was challenged as to whether the school is a "magnet" or an "academy." A LAUSD official stated that this is a new concept and still in formative stage.
LAPD Senior Lead Officer Don Graham, from the LAPD Devonshire Division, asked for clarification on which schools would be sending students. LAUSD said that if Monroe students do not take all the slots at the school then applications from Granada Hills and Cleveland High School would be taken.
Many individuals were concerned as to whether Monroe could actually provide 888 "local" TTA candidates, since the majority of the students are not from the immediate area and the school scores poorly on tests. Korenstein was asked whether the school would be nothing more than an overflow for Monroe instead of a school devoted to encouraging students to seek a teaching career. Korenstein said that she could not guarantee every student would become a teacher.
The LAUSD Board has a three-person Facilities Committee which will meet at 1:00 p.m. on February 19, 2002 to discuss the project, take public testimony, and decide whether to recommend approval or disapproval of the project. Their recommendation will be transmitted to the full LAUSD Board. The Facilities Committee meets in the LAUSD Auditorium/Board Hearing Room at 450 N. Grand Avenue in downtown Los Angeles.
According to Section 54954.3 of the Ralph M. Brown Act, the Facilities Committee meeting is the place where the public can testify about the project. The Brown Act says the full Board is not required to listen to public testimony if the same item has already been considered by a committee consisting exclusively of Board Members, and where all interested members of the public were allowed to testify.
The LAUSD Board will meet to approve (or disapprove) the project at its March 12, 2002 meeting, which will be held at 3:00 p.m. in the Auditorium/Board Hearing Room on Grand Avenue. Persons wishing to speak must telephone the Board the morning of the hearing (213) 625-6273 and register to speak. We have been told that the Board normally allows only the first seven callers to speak about an Agenda item. Prince has placed a call to Board Secretary Jefferson Crain (the Executive Officer of the Board) to ask if the Board intends to stick with this policy and restrict the number of speakers on this issue.
Acting President Prince announced the formation of an ad hoc Education Committee to study the CSUN matter further, and asked interested Stakeholders to remain after the meeting to sign up. He thanked Ms Korenstein and her staff for coming, and adjourned the meeting at 9:15 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Susan Steele, Acting Secretary
Next meeting on Wednesday, February 20, 2002 at, 7:00 PM at Northridge Hospital.
54954.3. (a) Every agenda for regular meetings shall provide an opportunity for members of the public to directly address the legislative body on any item of interest to the public, before or during the legislative body's consideration of the item, that is within the subject matter jurisdiction of the legislative body, provided that no action shall be taken on any item not appearing on the agenda unless the action is otherwise authorized by subdivision (b) of Section 54954.2. However, the agenda need not provide an opportunity for members of the public to address the legislative body on any item that has already been considered by a committee, composed exclusively of members of the legislative body, at a public meeting wherein all interested members of the public were afforded the opportunity to address the committee on the item, before or during the committee's consideration of the item, unless the item has been substantially changed since the committee heard the item, as determined by the legislative body. Every notice for a special meeting shall provide an opportunity for members of the public to directly address the legislative body concerning any item that has been described in the notice for the meeting before or during consideration of that item.